An experts' committee formed by the Goa government has recommended that lactating mothers be vaccinated on a priority in view of the possibility of a 'third wave' of Covid pandemic which doctors believe might affect children the most among other age groups.

Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) dean Dr Shivanand Bandekar, who heads the committee, said transmission of coronavirus might be transmitted from infected mothers to children during the third wave. “Lactating mothers with children below two years and the mothers with comorbidities should be given a priority in the vaccination,” he told reporters after attending the meeting of the panel.

Senior GMCH Dr. Jagdish Kakodkar said of the total coronavirus positive cases in the first wave in Goa, seven to eight percent of patients were children. This number increased to almost 12 percent during the second wave. “"A protocol prescribed by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) would be followed in Goa," Dr. Kakodkar added.

Goa's tally of COVID-19 cases stood at 1,43,192 as of Friday with an overall death toll of 2,302, as per health officials.

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